Saskatchewan monitoring water after CPKC engine spills 800 litres of fuel into river

Saskatchewan’s Water Security Agency (WSA) is monitoring conditions after a Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) engine spilled about 800 litres of fuel into the South Saskatchewan River late last week.

The WSA says it was made aware of the spill around 11 p.m. on Thursday through Alberta Environment and Protected Areas.

Saskatoon is downstream from the spill, and the community of Leader, Sask. has already indicated it would stop drawing water from the South Saskatchewan River as it expected the arrival of the fuel plume on Sunday.

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In an emailed statement, WSA told CTV News that CPKC rail and the province of Alberta have environmental response teams working to assess and mitigate the situation. The agency says it currently considers the risk to provincial water supplies “extremely low.”

“Communities that rely on the South Saskatchewan River as a drinking water source have been contacted, and can use water currently stored, or are already using wells that are removed from surface flows,” the agency said in a statement.

“WSA is monitoring the situation and there is no indication of concern at this time.”

According to WSA spokesperson Leah Clark, given the size of the spill and the distance to Saskatoon — the most populous community in the path of the spill — it’s not believed to pose a threat to human health.

The City of Saskatoon is expected to address questions about the city’s drinking water supply Monday afternoon.

The WSA says the predicted travel time from the spill site to the Saskatchewan border is about five days. By the agency’s estimate, what remains of the plume could reach Saskatoon by Thursday, Clark estimated.

WSA continues to work with officials in the Ministry of Environment, the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), and in Alberta Environment to stay up to date on conditions.